On this year’s government working report, on national target of economic increasing speed, we heard the saying of 8% once again. Premier Wen Jiabao gave a specific explanation to this. The current goals comprehensively consider various factors, most importantly is to put working focus on structural optimization, raising effectiveness, energy saving and consumption cut-down and pollution discharge reduction, preventing the increasing speed of undue pursuit and unrealistic competition, realizing a quicker and better development of economy.

Central government fixes the growth index in 8%, what’s the subtext? Surrounding 8%, when government formulates new macro regulation policy, what changes will occur? Ningbo economy and Ningbo enterprise development how to realize quicker and better?

Recently, this article invites some government officials, experts on economic problems and famous enterprises’ directors of this city to have a discussion on these problems.

Better and quicker is the necessity of economic development

Chang Mingyi (vice chairman of Ningbo CPPCC): Premier Wen Jiabao has clearly put forward in this year’s government working report, considering various factors, on the basis of optimizating structure, improving benefit, reducing energy consumption and protecing environment, this year’s GDP growth rate keeps around 8%. This fully shows that central government has sent out a clear signal, development concept should change from quicker and better to better and quicker. Good goes first. Economic development will change from pursuing total growth in the past to pursue quality improvement and coordinated development. From then on, our economy and social development will be on the way of scientific development.

Better and quicker development is deepening understanding on essential requirements of scientific development, on new situation of economic and social development in China, on the law of economic development in new stage, which will be the basic guiding concept in leading Chinese economic development in future. This reflects one big change of Chinese economic development concept. That is, in the past putting more emphasis on the developing speed, now it pays more attention to the benefit of development and the quality of growth, putting more emphasis on economical development, environmental development, safety development, harmonious development and sustainable development.

We can understand the developing speed of 8% from the view of equity and efficiency. If there’s extreme disparity in income distribution gap, surpassing people’s psychological endurance, will cause social instability, losing the necessary condition of enhancing economic efficiency and developing economy. Another connotation of 8% refers to that at present we must solve social equity and efficiency overall planning problem.

Lin Keyu (director of Ningbo economic commission): Sticking to better and quicker development concept is the necessity of industrial economic work of out city. At present, our city is in the industrialization transformation period, in the period of urbanizing acceleration, market perfection period and internationalization lifting period, but the deep-rooted contradictions like structural property and quality that restrict industrial and economic development havn’t been fundamentally solved. These contradictions and problems have seriously impaired the better and quicker development of industrial economy of our city. So we must follow the requirements of scientific development view and constructing socialist harmonious society, consientiously do good work in industrial structure, growth pattern, development thought, these three transformations. Sturdily develop resources intensive utilization work, actively optimize enterprise production and administration environment, vigorously promote key engineering project, making an effort to create new situation of industrial economic work.

Next stop, we must mainly grasp four strengthening and four speeding up. Firstly, strengthen innovative ability construction, speed up to promote core competitive advantage of region. Secondly, strengthen the promoting of key investment projects, speed up to realize industrial structure update and transformation. Thirdly, strengthen intensive utilization of resources, speed up to promote transprmation of economic growth model. Fourthly, strengthen enterprise service work, speed up to optimize enterprise developing environment.

Fang Jianxin (deputy director of Ningbo government development and research center): From the government working report, we can profoundly experience the following several points:

Firstly, good development is sustainable development. Since reform and opening-up, Ningbo economy and social development has gained splendid achievements. However, rapid economic development also brings the rapid increasing of factor resources consumption and ecological environment pollution. Therefore, the contradictions and restriction become more and more severe. Limited natural resources and weak ecological environment urgently need us to change economic growth mode, optimize industrial structure, develop circular economy, protect ecological environment and take the road of sustainable development.

Secondly, good development is coordinated development. Ningbo’s GDP per capita is over 6000 dollars, which has been in the middle and later period of development. This kind of imbalance has brought more and more contradictions and problems, bringing more and more trstriction in the course of development, which needs to pay more attention to coordinated development, especially the coordinated development between urban and rural areas. Only improve the rapid development of rural and backward areas, can really start domestic demand and make the economy and society be on a healthy development road.

Thirdly, good development is harmonious development. The overall construction of a well-to-do society put forward by the 16^th party congress, with society harmony as one of its main contents. Ningbo speed up to promote the development of social cause, must change the unbalanced situation.

Fourthly, good development is ability lifting. Development doesn’t just show as the growth of total quantity, but shows the lifting of development ability and enhancing of international competitiveness. If Ningbo wants to take the lead in economic and social development, it must deepen system reform, enlarge opening-up, improve developing ability by reform and opening-up. Through deepening the reform, perfect the socialism market economy system, making our system and operation mechanism be more favorable to the development of productive force. Through enlarging opening-up, strengthen international communication to lift our international competitiveness. We must speed up scientific progress, strengthen independent innovation, form its own core competitive ability, raise comprehensive competitive power, to cope with various difficulties and challenges.

Zhang Jian(deputy director of Ningbo CPPCC proposal committee): From quicker and better to better and quicker, although differs in order, it reflects the choice of developing concept.

We all have noticed, last year the goal that to decrease 4% of the energy consumption of GDP in national units and to decrease 2% of the amount of the main contamination hasn’t been realized. It reflects the problem that the economy increasing has paied greater price and the basis of supporting high-speed growth doesn’t exist. On the contrary, overall scale of investment in fixed assets is still large, bank capital fluidity surplus problem is outstanding, the factors that cause investment grow too fast and excessive credit loans placement still exsit.

The GDP index is a head and a general program. The central strengthens expectation and constraint of this general index, better arranges other indexes, especially having important realistic significance in guiding the arrangement of development index for all levels of the local.

The development of Ningbo enterprises how to realize better and quicker?

Wang Liping (president of Guangbo Group): Realizing better and quicker development of Chinese economy and the criteria of 8% gives a dose of preventive injection to Chinese economy, especially private economy. Private enterprises gain development by labor superiority and export policy preference, most of which are in the marginality of global markets. With the aggravation of shortage of workers and market globalization, this kind of advantage will gradually lose. Under the background of brand loss and innovation power insufficient, weaknesses on the penetration power of Chinese culture and global marketing network, are the core short plate of Chinese economy and Chinese enterprise development.

In face of transnational groups’ crazy acquisitions and instability of RMB exchange rates, 8% not only is the key index of implementing soft landing by the whole Chinese economy, but is the only benchmarking for private enterprises to prevent unilateral pursuit and unrealistic competition of growth speed. Enterprises only deeply grasp the essence of the speech given by Premier Wen, according to industry characteristics and itself developing demand, formulate definite and effective development strategy. With strategic eyes, apply the 8% standard flexibly, which is our tomorrow’s correct path.

Mao Lixiang(president of Ningbo Fangtai cooking utensil CO., Ltd.): From quicker and better to better and quicker, I think, it reveals the viewpoint of scientific development and sustainable development. In the past, many enterprises pursued one-sidedly and unrealistic competition increased rapidly, which resulted in high energy consumption and high pollution, thus decrease competitiveness. Nowadays, with the globalization of economy, the behavior of gaining rapid profit at the cost of environment and famous brand hasn’t been acceptable. Therefore, in order to strengthen international competitiveness, Chinese enterprises must take the better and quicker development road.

Although Ningbo enterprises develop rapidly, there still exist many problems. For example, there aren’t many enterprises having certain scale, enterprises with strong brand, and brands and enterprises with relatively strong international competitiveness.

Enterprises’ development how to realize better and quicker? In my opinion, mainly lies in the following three points. Firstly, vigoriously lift the wind of self-owned brand. Secondly, vigoriously lift the wind of technological innovation, paying attention to the research and development of patent technology, applying hi-tech to traditional manufacturing. Thirdly, vigoriously lift management level, enhance efficiency, reduce energy consumption, prohibit the investment on new projects at the cost of pollution and energy consumption.

Take Fangtai as an example, we has always been insisting on the innovation in technology, management and culture. Till now, we gain over 260 national patents together. Through the cooperation with first-class management consulting company, Fangtai gets promoted in each field like research and development management, human resource management, marketing, quality management, financial management, distribution management system, tec. The 25 management principles formulated by Fangtai is the original version to interpretate Chinese private enterprise internationalization using oriental concept.

Zheng Shaoqi (president of Ningbo Huatong Electrical Apparatus Group Stock Co., Ltd.): If enterprise wants to realize better and quicker development, the key is to improve its independent innovation ability. Over twenty years, we Huatong always regards technology innovation as the main line of enterprise development. This year, our company has determined 16 plans on new products, including primitive innovation, integrated innovation and imported digestion new products as well, which all belong to comparatively advanced high-end products intra-industry at present. Such as corollary scientific research project of Shanghai and Hangzhou maglev train——24kV metal armored withdrawable switchgear, jointly develop low voltage switchboard with high efficiency and low energy consumption with ABB Company, 35kV combined transformer of wind power and 35kV transformer with on-load tap-changer, etc.

Brand is the vitality of enterprise development and the necessary means to enhance product added value. We try to finish two created-brand jobs this year. One is to create Chinese famous brand product. High-voltage transmission and distribution equipments have been listed in the 2007 declaring catalogue national the eleventh five-year famous brand achieving plan. The products of our company have basic condition to create famous brand. Now we’re connecting with related department, striving to finish this target this year. The other is to create well-known trademark. Since Ningtong trademark gained Zhejiang famous trademark in December in 1999, it has been six years. This year, we’ll fulfil the target of establishing well-known trademark by brand planning.

Xu Lixuan (president of Huamao Group): The central’s decision reflects the heart of enterprise. In recent years, facing a serial of macro-control and the change of market environment, enterprise is also thinking of next development mode and development strategy. That is, how to change from extensive mode, scale type and expansion type development to content type, technology type and sustainable type development.

    Huamao has went through over 30 year’s developing road. Steadiness is our basic style. However, development is still our first task, the key of which is being good. Project’s investment and choice must be social benefit bringing along economic benefit, and conform to enterprise’s reality. Therefore, in the second half year of last year, we remodified outlines of Huamao Group Three One Project developing planning, put forward enterprise cultural orientation of doing more valuable things, promoting industry transformation and product update really and practically. Stationery products set on labor-intensive production mode are changing to digitalization, integration and intellectualization. Our energy consumption and cost is reduced to on the basis of 30%. Last year’s investment income has increased by over 30% than the previous year. This is the result of our adjustment in industrial structure and company management structure in recent years.

                                           From the journal Ningbo Economy